The tutorial in 8th grade biology that Republicans got after one of their members of Congress went public with something from the wackosphere was instructive, and not just because it offered female anatomy lessons to those who get their science from the Bible.

Take a look around key committees of the House and you’ll find a governing body stocked with crackpots whose views on major issues are as removed from reality as Missouri’s Representative Todd Akin’s take on the sperm-killing powers of a woman who’s been raped.

On matters of basic science and peer-reviewed knowledge, from evolution to climate change to elementary fiscal math, many Republicans in power cling to a level of ignorance that would get their ears boxed even in a medieval classroom. Congress incubates and insulates these knuckle-draggers.

Let’s take a quick tour of the crazies in the House. Their war on critical thinking explains a lot about why the United States is laughed at on the global stage, and why no real solutions to our problems emerge from that broken legislative body.

<snip> more at http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/23/the-crackpot-caucus/?nl=opinion&emc=edit_ty_20120824

May not surprise some of you but interesting nonetheless

We may have a hard time convincing the younger generation on how dangerous Ryan is for Medicare and Obamacare but here's another reason for them to understand what an ass Ryan is. The young generation are very concerned about their environment and global warming.

Meet Paul Ryan: Climate Denier, Conspiracy Theorist, Koch Acolyte

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), Mitt Romney’s vice-presidential pick, is a virulent denier of climate science, with a voting record to match.
A favorite of the Koch brothers, Ryan has accused scientists of engaging in conspiracy to “intentionally mislead the public on the issue of climate change.” He has implied that snow invalidates global warming.
Ryan has voted to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency from limiting greenhouse pollution, to eliminate White House climate advisers, to block the U.S. Department of Agriculture from preparing for climate disasters like the drought devastating his home state, and to eliminate the Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA-E):

more at this link.. http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2012/08/11/677051/meet-paul-ryan-climate-denier-conspiracy-theorist-koch-acolyte/

I just joined DU 2 days ago, no star and made two posts... rec'ed a few and BAM! Jury duty. So I did my patriotic duty and it was an iffy case.. turned out I was in majority and felt a bit more a part of the community. Prolly a good thing eh?

Global investors, skeptical about President Barack Obama ’s ability to turn around the economy, nonetheless aren’t enamored with the Republican alternatives.

While a plurality of investors said Obama’s re-election would be a bad thing for U.S. markets, 57 percent said in a Bloomberg Global Poll that the current contenders for the Republican presidential nomination aren’t offering good ideas to lessen U.S. economic woes.

(snip)

Gridlock between Democrats and Republicans is a “substantial” barrier to U.S. economic growth, said 56 percent of global investors, and a “modest” barrier, according to an additional 28 percent.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-12-09/obama-defeats-romney-in-global-poll-showing-republican-weakness.html


So much for what Bloomberg really wants to say... It's a very worthwhile read with lots of surprising numbers!

I'm from Mass and going for Liz Warren!!